It was a soggy day but hundreds of volleyball players and spectators jammed into Memorial Park, Pottstown. The weather tomorrow is supposed to be much better so hopefully it will be a brighter day and no rain! This was the third day of the Rumble. Saturday and Sunday are the two biggest days of competition.

The Pottstown Rumble is a 4-day fun-filled event – Thursday June 25 to Sunday, June 28, 2015. Along with amazing competition at all levels of the tournament, the Rumble offers plenty of other activities: food, music, and fun. The Rumble starts off Thursday with the Dream in Gold Clinic hosted by 3-time Olympic Gold Medalist Misty May with her Father Butch May – 1964 Olympian. Other instructors include high level volleyball players and coaches. Friday brings our Pottstown Rumble Juniors Grass Doubles Tournament ages 18 and under. Saturday morning starts off with a bang with a beefed up fireworks show as over 2,000 players eagerly wait to start their day. Saturday afternoon brings Women’s Pro Finals to center court while the Men’s Pro division wraps up Sunday afternoon competing for the $5,000 first place price. There will be gourmet food, clothing vendors, an on-site massage therapist, and high-energy music throughout the weekend!! All visitors welcome!!

All registrations are first come first serve! You will be notified prior to registering if you are NOT at the main field. Anyone registering after June 21 will be charged a late fee of $20 per entry, this includes walk-on’s if space is available. Walk-on’s will most certainly be playing on satellite fields.

I say kudos to the Pottstown Rumble organizers for another successful tournament. For a large event that draws several thousand volleyball players from across the United States and probably several thousand spectators, it runs like a well oiled machine. The Rumble is one of the biggest events that is hosted in the borough and probably the most well run. I think it draws a great group of people. A very well-behaved group from what I have observed over the years and today was no different.

I think the cooperation between the borough and the event organizers was apparent. From the PART trolley shuttling people between venues, the folks at Parks and Recreation and the powers that be in borough hall, it seemed as though everyone was on the same page. I even noticed Pottstown Police Officers walking around.

This event has put Pottstown on the sports world map and is a favorite venue among players. Memorial Park looked great. The music was a nice mix and had high energy. The sun was shining. Vendors had lines of people waiting to buy food. It just doesn’t get any better than that.

The Rumble showcases the best things about Pottstown. One vendor said to me they wished there were several more big events during the year like this one. It’s a nice infusion of cash into the local economy. That’s always a positive thing.

So hats off to another great Pottstown Rumble! Feeling Pottstown Proud.

POTTSTOWN — As twilight fell, two pairs who’d battled through two full days of Men’s Open play at the Pottstown Rumble battled in an evenly-matched final for $5,000 before a crowd of hundreds.

When it was over, Hudson Bates and Mark Berik, the 2011 Rumble Men’s Open Champions, added the 2013 crown to their resumes.

“Honestly, the Rumble is the best grass tournament in the country, I think,” said Bates, from Richmond, Va. “They stepped it up big-time this year. Great organizers, great sponsors, it’s just a fun, fun tournament. It’s awesome.”

By winning two games 11-6 and 11-9 in the best of three final, Bates and Berik, from Queens, N.Y., beat a pair from Ellicott City, Md., whom the courtside announcer dubbed the “Maryland Marauders,” Aaron Russell and Eric Lucas.

POTTSTOWN — The neatly manicured grass courts and multicolored neon nets in Memorial Park got more use Friday during the Dream in Gold Juniors Tournament.

Nearly 100 doubles teams signed up to play in the first juniors tournament at the Rumble, according to Rick Hanson, the director of project management for the Pottstown Rumble.

Hanson said the largest age group was the 18-and-under girls.

Supporters camped out to watch their children play under umbrellas, tents and canopies that sprayed water periodically. There were folding chairs, blankets and battery powered fans to keep the players and their family members cool between matches.

POTTSTOWN — Nearly 240 sweaty, tired participants filed into a tent to get a picture and an autograph with Misty May-Treanor after the Dream in Gold clinic Thursday.

And the Olympic beach volleyball legend wasn’t about to disappoint any of her fans.

Despite a long day of walking from clinic group to clinic group helping players improve their skills, May-Treanor signed autographs and took pictures with each participant in front of the large inflatable volleyball that now sits in the middle of Memorial Park.

She even turned the cameras around and took selfies with the fans and one of her Olympic gold medals.

The 20th Annual Pottstown Rumble Grass Doubles Volleyball Tournament will take place in Memorial Park, Pottstown on Saturday, June 25th and Sunday June 26th. The Rumble is one of the largest and toughest grass doubles volleyball tournaments in the nation.

The two-day event features over 90 nets and 1,700 competitors (2009). Memorial Park is located off King Street in Pottstown, convenient to Routes 100 and 422.